Seven Aztecs named to All-Mountain West first and second teams

San Diego State senior cornerback Leon McFadden stood out as the only three-time first-team selection on the list of
All-Mountain West teams
released by the league Tuesday.

The teams were chosen by the league's 10 head coaches and selected media members.

McFadden was accompanied on the all-conference first-team by SDSU tight end Gavin Escobar – a two-time first team selection – and senior offensive guard Nik Embernate, who helped to open holes the size of Texas for running backs Walter Kazee and Adam Muema this year.

Muema missed out on first-team honors, but was named to the second team along with senior center Alec Johnson, linebacker Jake Fely, and safety Nat Berhe.

Aztecs coach Rocky Long seemed a little disappointed that his peers hadn’t selected Muema to the first team.

The running back finished with 1,355 yards on 211 carries this season, an average of 6.4 yards per carry.

“I think Adam Muema was a good candidate to be player of the year in this league,” Long said. “He was only second-team all conference. If you look at the number of carries he had and the number of yards he has compared to the other running backs on that list, he was much more efficient than those two.”

Fresno State QB Derek Carr was a unanimous selection to the first team, and also the conference’s offensive player of the year.

Fresno State’s Robbie Rouse and Nevada’s Stefphon Jefferson were the two backs voted onto the first team.

Jefferson is the nation’s second-leading rusher, with 1,703 yards on 341 carries for a 4.99 yards-per-carry average. Rouse had 1,468 yards on 269 carries, averaging 5.46 yards per carry.

Defensively, Long said he wasn’t surprised that Fely – who led the Aztecs with 11.5 tackles for loss, who was second behind Berhe in total tackles – didn’t make it onto the first team.

“The way we play defense around here, it’s very difficult for our defensive players to get awards,” Long said. “We alternate so many players, they’re not in there as much as other players in their statistics. These teams are based on statistics. So if you’re the leading tackler in the league, guess what, you’re going to be first-team all-conference. It doesn’t matter if you played 700 plays or 300 plays.

Case in point: Nevada LB Albert Rossette, who led the league with an average of 10.7 tackles per game. He made the first team along with UNLV’s John Lotulelei and Boise State’s J.C. Percy.

Fresno State defensive back Phillip Thomas was named defensive player of the year, while Hawaii kick returned Mike Edwards netted special teams player of the year honors. Bulldogs' receiver Davante Adams was named freshman of the year.

Honorable mention

Sophmore linebacker Derek Largent certainly made an impact in his first season as an Aztec. Largent, a community college transfer, was named an All-Mountain West honorable mention after a season where he finished second only to Fely, with 6.5 total sacks.